The Elder Scrolls: Equestria

Chapter Four

A Flash of Green

“What was that?”

~Skyfall~

Silver magic wrapped around one of the spokes on the wheel, ever so slightly turning this way and that, guiding the enormous airship along its projected course.  Likewise, multiple ribbons of the same silver energy tugged and pulled on various ropes and pulleys, working alongside each other as though they were mimicking a sentient crew.  More, hidden beneath the hull, manipulated the rudders, all working in conjunction with each other towards their one goal.

“You work this entire ship by yourself?”  I asked the blue stallion beside me.  He took a gander at his handiwork before acknowledging my question.

“Well, essentially yes,” he said, turning back to me.  “More specifically, I cast a rather extensive ‘come-to-life’ spell – oh, don’t give me that look, it’s self-explanatory,” he interjected in response to the look I gave him, (the look that I would later adopt as my “I don’t know what you’re talking about” glare.  With Bronze Nut constantly divulging into his wealthy expanse of knowledge, I became rather good at it).

“The magic analyzes the knowledge in my mind on how this ship works, and applies it to the ship itself.  Because I was there supervising the entire time they were building her, I know every nook and cranny of this ship, and by extension so does my magic, working as a proxy to a normal crew.  Actually, I’d go as far to say it works better than a crew; no clashing personalities to have to fight with and all that drama.”

“That’s... rather spectacular.”

“Hmm? Ah, yes I suppose it is.”  Silence descended on us once more as we floated through the clouds.  Winds whistled as they grew stronger, and I followed a few of the silver motes as they adjusted to the change.  I could hear the ship groan quietly as it moved.  Bronze Nut shuffled beside me, but I didn’t pay much notice to it until I heard his signature “Hmm...”.  He was looking out at the horizon, where a mass of clouds were gathering.

“What’s that?” I asked, startling him out of his stupor.

“What is what?”

“Out there; those dark clouds.”

“Oh, that’s just a storm brewing.  Shouldn’t bother us though, it’s way out of our trajectory,” he answered before turning away.  Something didn’t sit right with me, the aged unicorn seemed too interested in what was out there for it to be “just a storm”.  And so I found myself staring out at the growing mass of clouds, intent on discovering what it was that Bronze Nut found so enthralling.  At first, I saw nothing out of the ordinary, just the swirling grey masses.  Then –

“What was that?” I blurted, causing Bronze Nut to perk up.  He glanced at me, then followed my gaze out to where the storms were gathering.

“Did you see something, lad?”

“Yeah, but I’m not sure what. It was there for a second, then gone,” I replied.  The both of us continued to stare out into the horizon.  I wasn’t even entirely sure what I saw was real.  It could have been easily a mirage.

“What did you see?” he asked intently.

“I, well... I’m not sure. It was like some sort of green flash out in the distance.  Around where that storm is.”  Now that I said it out loud, it occurred to me that the flash could have been lighting.  It seemed rather obvious in hindsight, that a flash of light in the midst of a storm should evidently be lightning.

“Hmm... how curious,” he stated simply.  It took me by surprise that the elder unicorn didn’t take my sighting for lightning.  Something about it had intrigued him, and now I was determined to know the significance.

“I’m sorry, but what’s curious?”  I said as I turned back to face him.  He continued staring out as he replied, eyes narrowed and focused on the spot I pointed out to him.

“Well, if one were to see a flash of light in a storm cloud, I would certainly assume that it was lightning,” he said slowly, stroking his white beard with a blue hoof.  Something in his tone of voice told me that he didn’t agree with this natural assumption like I did.  He continued, “But, you say it was green?” turning to me for confirmation.  When I nodded my head, he merely hummed in thought.  I gave him a few minutes for his silent musing before I broke his concentration.

“Does that mean anything?” I asked him.

He snapped his head in my direction.  “What? Oh, yes... yes I suppose it does... possibly....”  He went back to staring off into space.

I groaned in exasperation and let my head droop.  I learned to tell when he was lost in thought, because he would cease whatever it was he was doing, and stare off into some random direction completely oblivious to everything around him, all the while stroking his beard.  I waited for a minute or so, hoping that he would break away and actually answer a question without giving me more questions that needed answering!

When it appeared that he wasn’t going to, I sighed and moved toward the starboard side.  I watched a cloud float by, sending a chill through me as the moisture clothed my coat.  Out into the distance I could see an enormous mountain rising, as if the world was a bedsheet and somepony had pulled up a part of it as high as it could go, its apex only visible because I too was above the clouds.  About midway down the mountain, still a generous height above the ground, was a conglomeration of white and gold spires and towers growing out of the side.

To the West was an exuberant patch of clouds, grouped too close together to have been natural.  From here I could see small falls of rainbow pouring off the edge, disintegrating before reaching the ground beneath.  I could only assume this was a pegasus settlement.  Underneath the colossal of clouds was a large, silver spire towering above the land around it, rising high enough to disappear into the white wad of clouds.

“What are those out there?” I asked, with turning away from the spectacle.

“Hm?” was all I got in reply before my companion broke out of his reverie.  My ear twitched and followed a set of hoofsteps and jingling brass walking over to me.  When he figured out what had caught my fancy, “Ah, yes.  Such a wondrous sight.  Not many but the pegasi get to enjoy something like this, and not many pegasi travel this far from their homes.”

“Well, look who finally woke up.  I thought you had fallen asleep back there,” I jested with a thin smile on my face.  Bronze Nut acknowledged it with a warm chuckle.

“Sorry about that, lad.  The mind of an old stallion like me tends to run away at times.  What were you asking now?”

“I wanted to know what those two places were,” I replied, pointing out the city on the mountainside and the large tower.

“Ah, those are two of the three capitals in Equestria.”

“Three?” I blurted, before remembering that there were three provinces in the country, and that each one would need their own capital.

“Yes, three.  One for each of the provinces.”  Like I said.  “That one there on the mountain is Canterlot, capital of Unicornia.  It also houses the leading institute of magic, The University of Canterlot,” he said, flourishing the name with wonderment.

“And what of the tower?”

“That’s the ground section of Cloudsdale, capital of Pegasopolis.  The clouds above it are the actual city, but you can’t see much of it from this distance.”

The whole of the ship rocked slightly as another breeze swept through, dragging the cold air along with it.  I shivered involuntarily as the cold bit me hard, and wished that my coat was thicker.  Apparently the unicorn next to me read minds as well.  I wondered if that’s a spell I could learn... would’ve been damned useful in hindsight.

“Argh, damn my old mind,” he reprimanded himself.  “I should’ve thought to offer you something warm to wear, lad; it tends to get bloody cold up here, and being a breath away from winter will make it all the more worse as the days pass.”  He motioned to follow him with a blue hoof, and led me back down into the depths of the ship.

(\_.^\_.^\_.^\_>-<>-<-></(_)><->-<>-<_/^._/^._/^._/)

Where before he brought me to the galley (as I learned it was called), this time we took a right instead of a left, and down a corridor or two into a room filled with shelves, crates, chests, and wardrobes.  Most everything was covered in dust, but for a generous amount of the floor where we walked.  All but two of the chests were left open, allowing passersby and potential thieves to see the invaluable emptiness of their contents.

The wardrobes seemed to be the only furniture used, having the smallest layers of dust coating the bunch.  It was one of these that he led me to, silver magic wrapping around the handle and tugging open the old wooden door.  Inside were several folded garments of varying designs, ranging from simple cloth to embroidered silk.  Some of them seemed to have a faint, glowing outline to them, if looked at from just the right direction.

It was one of these that Bronze Nut pulled out.  It was one of the layered pieces, a brownish-red colored undershirt with a frayed grey collar, covered over by a thicker faded blue wool coat, with a sort of diamond pattern stitched in.  Keeping it in place was a leather belt wrapped around my waist.

Instantaneously I felt a warmth flow through me, expelling the cold air.  It was like I was laying beside a fire, only portable.

“Whew, what was that?” I breathed.

Bronze Nut raised an eyebrow.  “You seem very fond of the question.”

“Fond of... what? Oh... ha ha.”  He suppressed his own chuckle at my expense before answering my previous question.

“That set, amongst others, was enchanted with a petty level fire enchantment, along with greater resistance to counter the –” he stopped, taking in the look I was giving him.  “– It is enchanted to warm you,” he simplified.  “You know, if you wish to ever become more than just a novice at the arcane arts, there are basics you will need to master, and enchanting is only one of them,” he said simply.  It sounded like an observation, but the way he said it made it seem like he was reprimanding me.

I merely grunted in response; I knew he was right, I would eventually have to learn all of this new magic stuff, but not right now.  This was just a little too sudden for my tastes, and I was still adjusting to the idea of not having a past.

Almost as if he knew what I was thinking, “I’m sorry, lad. I’m pushing you too hard too fast.  I used to teach at the University you know, I supposed part of that rubbed off on me.”

“Why did you stop?”

“Oh, various reasons,” he answered solemnly.  I knew he was going to avoid answering, but I figured I should have asked anyway.  Bronze Nut wasn’t very open about his past, or at least, the specifics of his past.

Another silence descended in the halls as we made our way back up through the ship.  It was me who broke it first.

“So, what were you saying about the tower? The one below Cloudsdale?”

“Not much to say about it; It’s called the Tower of Harmony, and it was built the first years here by all three tribes, as a sort of peace offering to each other.  That’s where they signed the Entente of Harmony, named for the tower.”

By now we had reached the large doors that opened onto the deck.  The chilled air bit at my face (mostly my nose), but it wasn’t too harsh, and the enchanted coat I was wearing certainly helped to persuade away the cold.  We walked over to the edge of the starboard again, looking back at the monumental tower in the distance.  It had grown farther away since we went below, and now a forest backed by a mountain range had appeared around it, blocking most of it from view.

“I assume that was the peace treaty?”

“Yes, and I might add that it is rather common knowledge.  It would certainly alarm me if one was to not know of the Entente of Harmony.”

“And why is that?” I asked, turning to face him.

“Well, with the changelings about, you can never be too careful, lad.”  There was that word again, ‘changeling’.  It must of been of some importance, and I was sure I would need to know what they were.  I can honestly say, having that sort of a thought process, especially naturally, was rather unsettling.  Not even knowing what I would and would not require to have knowledge of only served to upset my stomach, and I could feel a familiar sinking feeling welling back up.

“What are changelings?  I’ve heard you mention them before.”

“Changelings are... well, monster is probably the best word for them, even if not accurate.  Calling them dangerous would be harsh, but they’re not exactly friendly to most ponies.  Would you rather finish this conversation in the galley, lad?  I only brought you up here because you were curious how I was able to magically run this ship, but, well, now that that’s settled...”

I nodded in agreement.  “Sure.”  I was getting bored of being topside myself; there really wasn’t much to do, other than follow the silver motes of light working the ropes and pulleys, or watching the landscape slowly waltz by.

(\_.^\_.^\_.^\_>-<>-<-></(_)><->-<>-<_/^._/^._/^._/)

When we reached the familiar room, the unicorn disappeared behind the counter for a moment, returning with a basket of assorted fruits, although most were apples.  When he returned I regarded him with a raised eyebrow.

“So this is why you wanted to come back down?”

Bronze Nut hummed thoughtfully.  “Hmm... possibly.”  He released his magical aura, and the basket dropped onto the table before us with a dull thunk.  “It’s nearing midday, and I forgot to eat breakfast because of your unexpected arrival.”  My eyebrow raised slightly higher at that, but he just waved it away with his hoof.  “Besides, I daresay you’ll be hungry yourself; you haven’t eaten since this morning either.”

I wasn’t sure how much truth there was to that.  True, I haven’t ingested anything but cider since... but I didn’t feel hungry.  Still, the red and yellow apple he brandished at me looked tasty, so I took him up on his offer.

I held out a hoof for him to drop the apple into, but he just sort of stared at it, a small frown on his face.  Finally he relinquished it, and the sweet sugars invading my mouth when I took a bit of it proved him right.  I was hungry.

He too picked out an apple from the basket, but didn’t eat it quite yet.  It was almost disturbing watching him contemplate me while I ate.  I stopped mid-chew, swallowing what was left in my mouth as I stared back at him.  “... What?”

“Nothing,” he replied, taking a bite out of his apple.  “I’m just not accustomed to seeing a unicorn not using magic.”

“Well, I’m sorry that my inability to use magic troubles you so,” I breathed out fast, harsher than I should have been, or perhaps just enough.

“I’ve done well letting you off, with your attitude certainly being understandable because of your incident, but I will have you observe manners that are due to me in my presence!”  I reeled back, surprised at his outburst, but I returned back to the field ready to lay into him without a viable cause, my pride rearing.

Before I could open my mouth however, he cut me off.  “You are but a guest, a foal at that, and I am both your host and your elder.”  He rose up, both hooves on the table, pushing himself above me as I feel flat onto my back.  “And I will not have you demeaning me on my own ship!”

“I’m sorry, I was just... I, uh... yeah... sorry.  I’m sorry,” I babbled.

“I understand you are going through something rather difficult, and I won’t speak under the pretense of knowing how you feel.  Perhaps I shouldn’t have been as harsh as I was, so I’ll ask you to forgive me on that, but my request still stands, lad.  Now, let us put this behind us, and continue on the matter we were to discuss upon coming here.”  He held out a hoof, and for the second time that day he pulled me off the floor of the galley.

“On the previous subject, however: in my library I have a personal collection of what should be every spell tome out there.  Perhaps later you and I could peruse some of them?”

“Every spell tome?”

“Why yes, lad.  Quite an astounding collection, if I do say so myself; I’m quite proud of it.”

“... Sure, sounds like a plan,” I said, to which he nodded in agreement.  If he had a library with every spell tome... I entertained the idea of there being memory spells hidden there.  In fact, I recalled a few hours ago, when the Captain mentioned using a memory spell on me to scrounge through my mind.  However, something seemed fishy about the way he said it...

“Now,” I started, bringing the conversation back to the subject he was telling me about before we descended back down into the ship.  “You were telling me about the changelings.”

“Ah, yes quite right.  And what was it I had said about them, lad?”

“You said something about them being a danger to ponies.”

“Yes, right.  I myself have had dealings with them in the past, but to most travelers they can be a very great hinderance, although most ponies never see them.”

“And why is that?” I asked, finishing off the apple and reaching for a second.  The skin was bitter, and the flesh was a little sour, but it wasn’t bad.

“Changelings reside in the deepest recesses of Equestria, and are astoundingly protective of their hives.  There are very few hives that exist on the surface, but most are crafted farther underground than most ponies are willing to travel.  They only time they seem to surface is around Hearts and Hooves Day.”

“And what is Hearts and Hooves Day?”

Bronze Nut took another bite of his apple before answering.  “It is a holiday observed by most of the country.  It started several decades ago; a famous scandal that involved our own Unicorn King, before his daughter took his place on the throne.”

“We have a Unicorn King?”

“Yes, before he stepped down and ceded the throne to Princess Platinum, the current ruler of Unicornia.”

“What happened to him?”

“Old age.”  Bronze Nut had a somber overtone in his voice, and I guessed that he might have known the Unicorn King.  I could only imagine what it was like to lose a friend.  The slithering serpents in my gut reminded me of the possibility that I just couldn’t remember what it was like.  I imagined a little me trying to beat away the snake with an apple core.

“So, why do these changelings surface on Hearts and Hooves Day?”

“Changelings are a unique species because they feed off of emotions, particularly love.”  Bronze Nut removed himself from the table, opting to refill our tankards with more home-brewed cider.  I was beginning to wonder exactly how healthy consuming this much cider was, but at a glance there didn’t appeared to be any other drink taps.

I rolled an apple in between my hooves.  “How does something feed off of love?”

At this he chuckled, bringing up the second mug to the tap as he set down the first.  “Do not tempt me, lad, or we’ll be here ‘till sunrise tomorrow –” his head snapped up “– Oh!  Speaking of which....”  He closed his eyes, and the glow around his horn intensified.  I continued batting the apple around, mulling over whether to eat a third.  I hung my head and sighed, wondering how long he would be out of it this time.

Fortunately it was only a few seconds.  The glow from his horn ceased, only to reignite fast enough to catch the mug he dropped.  “Good, we’ve still plenty of time.”

“Plenty of time for what?”  I frowned as a thought occurred to me.  “Where are we going?”

He passed back the dull tin tankard, now full with golden cider.  “To the Arch-mage, whom will hopefully be able to apprentice you.”  He sat down, taking a sip of his drink and a bite of his apple before continuing.  “We’ll be nearing her cottage in but a few hours, plenty of time for me to train you in some basic magic.”

I was stunned by this sudden turn of events.  “Wait, wait.  Why are we going to the Arch-mage?”

“Because, you are a unicorn who needs to learn magic, and she is somepony who teaches magic.  Rather obvious match, if you ask me,” said the Captain nonchalantly.  This only irritated me.  One of the snakes hissed at a miniature Captain.

“You said yourself that you were once a professor, and you have a library of spell tomes!  Why can’t you teach me?”

“Because,” he said calmly, setting his mug down.  “I have places to be, ponies I need to see.”

I threw my hooves in the air.  “And why does that mean I need to leave?”

“Why are you so desperate to stay beside me?”  I was oblivious to the tension leaking into his voice, the beasts in my stomach egging me on with hisses and snarls as they snapped their jaws.  The little pony in my mind threw away the apple core and ran for cover.

“Why?  Why?  You are the only pony I know!  I literally woke up on your ship with absolutely no memory – a bloody anomaly, as you so put it!”  I venomously reminded him.  “You seem to be the only pony out of the two of us who knows what going on, and here you are just dumping me at the feet of this Arch-mage!”

“I already told you –”

“Told me what?”  I slammed my hooves on the table, spilling both our mugs.  I could see a fire alight in the stallion’s eyes, but my foolish emotions already had the better of me.  “That you’d rather wait until you had further proof?  How do you even plan to get this ‘further proof’?  At least tell me what’s going on here!”

There was a moment of silence as we both stared at each other.  “How do I know that you’re not the one who did this to me?”  In all honesty, I wasn’t aware that thought had crossed my mind until I said it aloud.

“Because I’m trying to help you,” he said through clenched teeth.

“No,” I stood up, staring at the Captain incredulously.  “No, it all makes sense!  I wake up on your ship, with no memory, and you just happen to know why?”  I started pacing back and forth.  “You’ve already told me that you know memory spells, and I’m sure you have a whole section on memory magic or whatever in that library!  You’ve spent the last few hours just waltzing around your ship with a pony who just appeared, drinking cider and eating apples –”

“Stop,” he commanded.

“You want me to stop?  Then tell me what’s going on!  Give me a reason to trust you, or give me back my memory!”

“SIT DOWN!” thundered the Captain, the walls of the galley shuddering in response.

I planted my flank straight onto the wooden floor at his words.  My eyes widened as he slowly pulled himself off the bench, and advanced on me.  What was I to do if he attacked me?  I should have waited for him to teach me some magic before calling him out!  I kicked myself backward, trying to put as much distance between myself and the elder unicorn.

His horn flashed with a brilliant silver, and I swore all the cider from earlier ran through me as I was sure I was about to die –

But I looked into his old, silver eyes, and all the fear washed away.  I wondered why I was so insistent on casting the unicorn as the villain, where he had spent the better half of his day catering to an unexpected guest.  Surely, after the last few hours, he had earned the benefit of the doubt?

I stopped, and we stared at each other for a moment, until the light from his horn died.

He trotted over to where I lay, and looked down upon me with an unreadable expression.  “I am not trying to hurt you, I am trying to help you,” he said in a calm tone.  “Do you believe me?”

I didn’t nod or shake my head, instead I just continued to stare at him as he continued.  “I did not remove your memory, nor did I in any way harm you, lad.  I have seen a lot in my travels, perhaps too much.  Your appearance on my ship I will admit startled me, but long ago I learned that rash actions lead to damning results.  Do you follow?”

I nodded my head.  “I do not have all the answers, lad, nor shall I pretend to.  Much care is to be taken, and that is why I am entrusting you to the Arch-mage.  She is a very capable mare, and she will take care of you in my stead.”

“And... until then?” I asked him cautiously.

“Until then, I’d wager our time best be spent in the library, training you in some magic, eh, lad?”

I felt a warm elation at the prospect of learning magic, and finally being something other than a useless unicorn.  The serpents receded, coiling around each other.  I pushed myself off the old, wooden floor.  “So... shall we get started?”

The elder unicorn chuckled heartily as he followed suit.  “It is nice to see you showing some enthusiasm.  Follow me to my library, and let us see what you can learn within our allotted time.”

We left the familiarity of the galley, and I followed the blue stallion down numerous wooden corridors that, all together, should not have been able to fit inside the entirety of the ship.  As we trecked through the bowels of the monstrous craft, I began to dwell on our destination:  The Arch-mage.  True, it was painfully obvious that I wasn’t going to spend my life aboard this ship with Bronze Nut, but in the last few hours that life was all I had known.  The idea of actually leaving the airship, and embarking on my own quest in Equestria scared me more than I would have admitted.

To distract myself, I let my mind drift to my future with this Arch-mage, and what it would be like under her tutelage.  It was in that moment a thought occurred to me.  It wasn’t a pleasant thought, and the idea sent a cold shiver down my spine and into my gut, freezing it into a weighty block of ice that I wanted nothing more than to throw up.  “B... Bronze Nut?” I choked out.

“Yes, lad?”

“W... what should I tell her my name is?” I said slowly.  At this the unicorn froze.

“Oh... oh dear.”  He mumbled something to himself, possibly several curses in another tongue, before he turned to me, the light from his horn throwing his face into sharp relief.  “Well, it certainly won’t do to have you wandering around without a name now will it?”  He coughed into his hoof.  “Do you... have any suggestions?”

I shook my head; at the moment I was feeling rather inept about pony nomenclature, possibly stemming from the fact that the only pony name I was aware of was Bronze Nut’s.

“Well....”  For the first time since meeting him (which wasn’t saying much) Bronze Nut’s face went blank.  He stared at me hard, making me rather uncomfortable, for a short time before gesturing to the old wooden ceiling above us.  “Sky....”  He then brought his hoof slowly down until he pointed at me.  “... fall.”

I stared back at him for a second, then deadpanned.  “Sky... fall?  Skyfall?  You’re naming me after how I arrived on your ship?”  I raised an eyebrow.  “Seriously?”

“Oi!  Don’t look at me like that; I was never good at crafting names, that’s why I let my wife name our children,” he said with a chuckle.

“You have a wife?”  I was quite frankly surprised.  Despite his age, I had figured he had no spouse, primarily drawing this conclusion because I had never seen a portrait of any mare aboard his ship.  Then again, I had never been to his quarters.

The stallion’s face grew very melancholy.  “I... I did.”  Oh.  Well, damn good job, Skyfall!  Congratulations on being tactless with the one and only pony you know!

“I’m sorry,” I offered.  Bronze Nut waved it off.

“It is fine, lad.  She’s been... gone a long time, and I’ve had plenty of years to come to terms with her passing,” he said, giving me a reassuring smile.

“And... your children?” I asked, biting my lower lip.  He nodded somberly. “Oh.”

“It’s been a while, lad – Skyfall,” he corrected, tasting my new name on his tongue.  It was weird being addressed with an actual name, but I had to admit it was much better than not having one.  “Like I said, I’ve had years to get over it, and I would rather not dwell on it.  Come on, we’re not far from the library.”

I followed him in silence, and neither of us spoke again until we reached his library.

(\_.^\_.^\_.^\_>-<>-<-></(_)><->-<>-<_/^._/^._/^._/)

        Three hours later, as the sun began to slowly fall back towards the horizon, we arrived at our destination, or more accurately my destination.

During those three hours, which had gone by faster than I had hoped, I managed to learn telekinesis, alongside the basics of a novice healing spell, and a novice destruction spell.  Bronze Nut found my learning curve to be fascinating, telling me that a normal unicorn spent weeks mastering novice spells, whereas I had learned them in the expanse of mere hours.  When I questioned him about it, he assured me that it fit in with his theory about my predicament; I, however, felt there was more to it than he let on.  Something about the fascination in his voice when he was describing it.

We landed on the shore, near the edge of the mountain range I saw earlier.  According to the Captain, the Arch-mage lived on the outskirts of the mountain, but close enough that his airship could not land.  She lived in a cottage not far from where we landed, and he gave me directions to a path that led there.

Now all that was left was to say goodbye.

That left us standing beside each other awkwardly, staring out at the massive jut of rock in front of us.  It was miniscule compared to the mountain Canterlot rested on, but still intimidating in its own right.

“Well... thanks for the, er, lift.  And for teaching me magic.”  That wasn’t awkward at all.  Nope.

“You’re welcome, lad.”

“And, I guess this is goodbye?”

“Oh, I’m sure we’ll meet again somewhere along the path, perhaps sooner than later,” he said ominously.

“Um... sure,” I replied.  I stared at the gangplank the Captain had laid out, working up the courage to move.  Bronze Nut held up a hoof, signaling his intention to speak.

“I don’t mean to be brash, but I get this feeling, lad, that you’ve been brooding over your predicament.  Somehow, you believe, that you’ve just... popped into existence!  That you have no past to recollect.  Am I close?”

I sighed and nodded my head; there was no point in denying it.  “Yeah. Pretty close.”

Bronze Nut put a hoof on my chin, and lifted my face up level to his eyes, giving me a sober grin.  “You do.  You have a past, as you pointed out earlier.  The hard part is is that your memories have not been erased, they have been obliterated.  You do have a past, just as you have a present, and will have a future.  The question now is:  Will you spend the future dwelling on the past, or spend the present dwelling on the future?”

I had no answer to that, so I just stood there, the wind blowing my mane into my face.  I felt the wind; it was softer, warmer down here than up in the atmosphere, comforting.  It was warm enough that I no longer needed the fine clothes Bronze Nut had given me.  My magical aura (which was the same gold color as my eyes) enveloped the suit, removing it layer by layer.

“I won’t be needing this anymore,” I said as I handed him the pile of silk and cloth.  “Thanks.”

My gold aura was replaced by silver.  “You’re welcome, lad.”

I turned towards the wooden plank hanging off the ship.  I was about to leave this ship, the only reality I had known since waking up that morning.  I was about to embark on a quest through Equestria, wherever that would take me.  It all started with a single step, just one hoof on that board, I could do it!

I raised a pale hoof, and then carefully laid it down onto the gangplank.  I felt the anxiety leave me through a shallow gasp.

“And, you’re sure the Arch-mage will take me in?” I asked, turning back to look at the elder blue stallion one last time.

“Just tell her ‘The Captain sent you.’  That should dispel any doubts she has.”

“Thanks, Bronze Nut.  For everything.”

“Don’t mention it, lad.  I’d do it for anypony who fell out of the sky.”  We both shared a chuckle at that.  There was one last awkward silence, before he broke it with a final farewell.  “We’ll see each other again soon, I’m sure,” he said with a wave, pulling the wooden board back onto the deck.

“Well, see you later.”  There was a moment’s pause, and then his ship began to take to the sky once more.  Just as it left, I was able to make out its name composed in beautiful golden calligraphy, next to the figurehead of an even more beautiful ivory mare:  The Celestia.

I wondered if that name had any sort of special meaning.  Knowing Bronze Nut, it most likely did.  I watched the ship sail off, until the gigantic vessel became a speck of brown, and even that disappeared.

A sharp gust of wind blew over the ocean, throwing a refreshing spray over me, misting my coat.  I closed my eyes, and just listened to all of the new senses around me.  There was a rhythmic splash as the waves beat against the sandy shore before retreating back to their watery fortress, waiting impatiently for their next chance.  There was a whisper of wind as it rustled the leaves of the nearby trees, and a bird called out to its family.

I felt the sand underneath me.  Individually, each speck of sand was rough and coarse, but altogether it was soft, and my hooves sank slightly into it.  The waves continued to mist my coat with each breach of the shore.  It all felt so new to me, and yet, somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew it all felt familiar.  None of these sensations were new, and yet I retained no memory of ever experiencing them before hoof.

I opened my eyes, shaking off the sand that clung to my coat, and saw that the brown speck that was The Celestia had gone completely.  I was alone.

I had been alone before – on the Captain’s ship not every moment was spent with him, there were times where he went off to do his own thing – but even then I was not alone.  He was still there on that ship with me.  But now, he wasn’t here.  There was no other stallion nearby for me to call upon, however vain that notion was.  I was, for the first time in my known life, alone.

I turned to the forest bordering the beach, wherein lay the path that would guide me to the Arch-mage’s cottage.  True, I was alone right now, but not for long.